February Events Announced at the Dallas Opera

Saturday, February 2, 2013 brings internationally renowned Sicilian tenor Marcello Giordani to town for a single outstanding performance at 7:30 p.m. in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House.

Mr. Giordani has conquered most of the world's major music stages and made his 1997 TDO debut in our production of Donizetti's delightful L'elisir d'amore (The Elixir of Love). His recent appearance as Radames in the "Windy City" prompted Chicago Classical Review to write, "Giordani's voice soared thrillingly over the massed ensembles of Act 2 and he brought an emotional depth and highly nuanced vocalism to his late scene with Amneris and the final duet." Or, as Peter G. Davis of New York Magazine put it in another review: "Giordani always delivers the goods."

Joining Mr. Giordani onstage will be award-winning Texas-born soprano Jan Cornelius.
The Dallas Opera Orchestra and guest artists will be under the baton of one of the world's most talked-about young conductors, Maestro Evan Rogister, who made his operatic debut with Houston Grand Opera and recently conducted King Roger in his Santa Fe Opera debut. He will return to New Mexico next summer to lead the much-anticipated world premiere of Theodore Morrison's Oscar (based on the life of Oscar Wilde), following his spring debut at Lyric Opera of Chicago conducting Previn's A Streetcar Named Desire and Verdi's Rigoletto. Rogister began his training as a classical musician, "first as a trombone player-then as a baritone-at Indiana University but he did not begin serious work on conducting until he was at Juilliard, studying for his master's in voice. 'Having studied singing, I understand breathing better. The lucky thing for me is that it not only helps singers, but it helps the way I conduct the orchestra'." (Opera News)

Maestro Rogister will launch the Winspear Opera House performance on the evening of the 2nd with the powerful overture from La forza del destino by Giuseppe Verdi. Mr. Giordani will be performing "O fede negar potessi" from Verdi's opera Luisa Miller. Miss Cornelius will sing "Ah fors'e lui..." and "Sempre libera" from Verdi's much-loved La traviata. Other concert highlights include Miss Cornelius performing the familiar aria, "Mi chiamano Mimi," before Mr. Giordani joins her on stage to sing the duet "O soave fanciulla," also from Giacomo Puccini's La bohème. The Dallas Opera Orchestra will offer even more Puccini in the form of the "Intermezzo" from Manon Lescaut.

Tickets for this special night of opera are only $25 apiece! Contact the Dallas Opera at 214.443.1000 or purchase at the door (subject to availability) or online, 24/7, at dallasopera.org/events.

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